Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Monolog: 9 bulan

(amaran: sesiapa yang tidak berhati jiwang, read at your own risk.)

Mohd Dzulkarnain Zainal Ahbiddin.
Bergambar ketika bersiar-siar di Taman Burung, Kuala Lumpur.


Sedar tak sedar, sudah 15 tahun aku mengenali lelaki ini, dan semalam, genap 9 bulan aku bersamanya. 9 bulan yang aku rasakan begitu pantas berlalu. 9 bulan yang dipenuhi kisah suka-duka dan juga cinta. Ya, cinta.

Apa itu cinta? aku pun tidak tahu apa jawapannya dalam bentuk kata-kata, tetapi yang pastinya aku yakin, apa yang aku rasakan ini adalah cinta. Aku masih ingat kali pertama dia melafaskan kata cinta kepadaku. Ketika itu, kami berdua berada di dalam kereta untuk ke suatu tempat. Pada waktu itu, hubungan kami baru berusia beberapa minggu..mungkin 2 atau 3. Dia katakan padaku, "I sayang you, I cinta you. I taknak menggunakan perkataan 'love' kerana ia boleh membawa maksud 'sayang' atau 'cinta'. Bagi I, 'cinta' adalah perasaan yang lebih kuat dari 'sayang'. Semalam I sedar yang perasaan I terhadap you sudah mencapai tahap cinta. I cintakan you, sayang."

Aku tidak tahu apa yang aku patut katakan pada ketika itu. Lidahku kelu. Tiada yang keluar dari mulutku melainkan ucapan terima kasih. Aku tahu dia tidak mahu itu. Aku tahu dia ingin aku mengucapkan kata-kata yang sama kepadanya, tapi aku belum bersedia. Atau lebih tepat, aku tidak tahu apa itu cinta. Aku tidak mahu melafazkan sesuatu yang aku tidak pasti akan maknanya.

Aku sudah terlupa bila kali pertama aku melafazkan kata cinta kepadanya. Tetapi yang pasti, aku tidak membuatnya menunggu terlalu lama. Mungkin selepas beberapa hari dia menyatakan yang dia mencintai aku. Aku menyedari yang aku juga mencintainya bila aku tahu yang aku tidak boleh kehilangannya, bila aku tahu yang aku tidak boleh hidup tanpanya, bila setiap kali dia menangis, aku menangis bersamanya, dan bila setiap kali dia ketawa, aku ketawa bersamanya.

Selama kami bersama, sudah banyak suka dan duka yang telah kami lalui..mungkin lebih banyak dari segelintir rakan-rakanku yang telah mendirikan rumahtangga. Aku teringat satu peristiwa di awal hubungan kami. Pada waktu itu, aku masih lagi sukar untuk mempercayai lelaki, walaupun lelaki itu adalah dia. Disebabkan oleh sikapnya yang terlalu baik terhadapku, aku sering terfikir, adakah layanannya itu akan kekal sehingga ke tua? Atau apakah ketika aku tidak lagi cantik, dia akan keluar mencari pengganti dan meninggalkan aku keseorangan di rumah? Aku sering berasa gelisah pabila mengenangkan perkara itu. Disebabkan aku banyak mengelamun pada waktu itu, dia sedar akan perubahan pada diriku. Dia cuba untuk mencungkil apa yang ada di benak fikiranku. Dengan rasa yang serba-salah, aku mengaku padanya yang aku mempunyai masalah untuk mempercayai lelaki, termasuk dia. Tidak dapat aku ceritakan bagaimana raut wajahnya ketika itu. Dia sungguh kecewa dengan kenyataanku, lalu menghisap beberapa batang rokok tanpa bersuara. Aku rasa bersalah, aku tahu aku telah melukakan hatinya. Aku tahu dia mengharapkan aku mempercayainya kerana dia mempercayai aku tanpa berbelah-bagi. Pada waktu itu, baginya, aku adalah nyawanya, dan bagiku, dia hanyalah seorang lelaki. Aku menangis di tengah-tengah kesibukan kota.

Setelah beberapa ketika, dia berpaling kepadaku. Dia melafazkan kata-kata cinta padaku. Dia meyakinkanku bahawa dia tidak akan berubah, bahawa dia hanya mencintaiku dan akan terus mencintaiku seorang. Dia meyakinkan aku bahawa dia akan tetap mencintaiku walau kulitku sudah kedut seribu, dan kepalaku telah dilitupi dengan helaian rambut putih. Dalam linangan air mata, dia meyakinkan aku. Aku menggagahkan diri untuk melihat wajah dia yang telah aku lukai. Ternyata dia ikhlas mencintaiku. Malam itu, segala keraguanku terhadapnya lenyap sama-sekali. Aku mempercayainya. Aku yakin akan dia. Aku tahu dia adalah yang terbaik untukku. Aku tahu aku mencintai dia.

Kini, aku hanya mengharapkan dan mendoakan hanya yang terbaik buat kami berdua. Aku berharap, walaupun aku tidak dapat bernikah dengannya pada hari ulangtahun pertama perhubungan kami, setidak-tidaknya dapatlah aku mengikat tali pertunangan dengannya. Aku sudah tidak sabar lagi menantikan detik aku diijabkabulkan dengannya, bergelar isteri kepadanya. Aku tidak sabar untuk melahirkan dan membesarkan zuriat kami. Aku sudah tidak sabar lagi untuk membina sebuah keluarga dengannya. Membina kehidupan dengannya. Kehidupan aku dan dia.

Ya, dia. Dia, yang merupakan
nyawaku,
nafasku,
hidupku,
bungaku,
bulanku,
matahariku,
pelangiku,
sinarku,
penyeri hidupku,
kekuatanku,
doronganku,
wangianku,
harapanku.

Dia adalah segala-galanya bagiku.

Dialah cintaku.

Jika apa yang aku alami ini adalah mimpi, jika apa yang aku alami ini adalah fantasi, biarkan aku enak dibuai mimpi ini. Jangan sekali-kali menyedarkan aku kepada realiti.

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Shocking? Surprising? Unbelievable?

I found this article a few minutes ago...

http://utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2009&dt=0708&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Ekonomi&pg=ek_02.htm

Malaysia jadi 'lubuk' syarikat bioteknologi Korea

KUALA LUMPUR 7 Julai - Malaysia yang kaya dengan sumber alam semula jadi, menyebabkannya dianggap sebagai 'lubuk' kekayaan oleh syarikat-syarikat bioteknologi antarabangsa terutamanya dari Korea.

Negara itu mempunyai minda dan kepakaran yang baik dalam bioteknologi manakala Malaysia pula mempunyai sumber semulajadi yang kukuh.

Sebanyak 22 buah syarikat dari negara itu akan membuat pelaburan dalam bidang tersebut yang dilihat mempunyai potensi besar untuk dikomersialkan.

Malah, Malaysia juga dianggap mampu mencipta pasaran yang baik untuk syarikat-syarikat berkenaan bagi menembusi 10 buah negara sekitarnya yang dihuni 600 juta penduduk dengan Kadar Dalam Negara Kasar (KDNK) terkumpul berjumlah AS$1.4 trilion (RM4.94 trilion).

Menteri Sains,Teknologi dan Inovasi, Datuk Dr. Maximus Ongkili berkata, kini, syarikat-syarikat berkenaan boleh mengubah lokasi kilang dan aktiviti-aktiviti kajian dan penyelidikan (R&D) ke negara ini.

Katanya, syarikat-syarikat berkenaan boleh mengambil peluang terhadap kedudukan Malaysia yang terletak di tengah-tengah Asia selain terletak di antara pertumbuhan ekonomi rancak negara India dan China.

Selain itu, katanya, Malaysia juga merupakan negara Islam yang memberi kemudahan kepada syarikat-syarikat berkenaan untuk menembusi pasaran negara-negara Pertubuhan Persidangan Islam (OIC).

Jelasnya, OIC kini dianggotai sebanyak 57 buah negara.

''Malaysia kini berada di fasa kedua dasar bioteknologi negara iaitu pengukuhan sumber manusia dan sedang menuju ke fasa tiga iaitu pengkomersialan. Fasa satu merupakan tempoh kajian dan penyelidikan,'' katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian pada majlis menandatangani perjanjian antara Institut Kajian Biosains dan Bioteknologi (KRIBB) dengan Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation (BiotechCorp), Institut Piawaian dan Penyelidikan Perindustrian Malaysia (SIRIM) dan Ultimate Biotech Sdn. Bhd.

Katanya, Malaysia dilihat terlalu pantas melangkaui sasaran bioteknologi yang sepatutnya berada pada fasa ketiga pada tahun 2011.

''Ini merupakan satu petanda yang baik apabila kita berada di landasan yang betul, malah lebih pantas daripada sasaran yang diberikan,'' ujarnya.

Fasa keempat merupakan fasa untuk perniagaan di peringkat global.


Now my biotech friends...do you think this is true? That we have passed the research phase? That we are too fast in the biotechnological development? That we are already in the human capital phase and is going to the commercialization phase? But why almost all of biotech graduates (that I know, at least) ended up continuing their studies because they could not find any job? And why during that BioCareer09, most of the vacancies were for people outside of the biotechnology field, and there were less than 5 openings for biotechnologists? Why, when we are developing too fast in biotechnology, most of biotech graduates cannot find any job (other than becoming research assistant and getting paid less than rm2000/month, or becoming like me, a tutor)? Why? Why? Why?

And that's why I laughed when I went to the BioCareer 09, and also when I was reading this article.

Unbelievable.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

updates

I haven't updated this blog for quite some time now. That shows how busy I am lately, although I'm pretty sure there are some people who disagree with me, considering I had so much time before. But as always, all works tend to come to me at the same time. So what have I been doing?

Papers editing

So my faculty decided to make two books, and it just happen that I was selected to be in one of the editorial board. I had to edit undergraduate thesis in order to publish it. Since apparently these students didn't take any scientific writing class, the papers are quite a mess. Results and discussions were being put together, inconsistent use of figures and tables, wrong formatting, direct-translated/informal english..urgh.

Kursus Persediaan Pengajian Siswazah bagi Pegawai Akademik

This was a 4-day course. Monday-Thursday, June 22-25, 2009. We were given talks on how to choose university for our graduate studies, how to choose supervisors, how to publish papers, what to expect during the duration of the studies, what we should do during study leave, etc. Pretty much like a motivational talk, apart of other technical stuffs. It was a good course, but I wish it had been organized earlier. I mean, most of us had already chosen our universities and supervisors prior to the course.

Medical Checkup

On Friday, June 26, 2009, I went to the Student Medical Center for a medical checkup. I needed it for my graduate school registration. After going there, to my surprise, I needed to bring my offer letter for swine flu screening. I wasn't told to bring it, and I had to drive back to my office to take it, so I complained (a lot) to the nurses. Ha! Padan muka

The closing of the 14th International Conference on Thinking (ICOT)

This was held at the KL Convention Center on Friday June 26, 2009. I wasn't asked to go for the closing ceremony, but I wanted to go, so I went. I was able to listen to the final talk by Edward de Bono, and it was interesting and amazing. His thinking was extraordinary that left me wondering how he came out with all of them. Maybe I should buy his book.

Graduate school and class registration

I am officially a graduate student at the Faculty of Biotechnologies and Biomolecular Sciences, UPM. I registered on June 29, 2009. It was a quick process - I took approximately 30 minutes to get it all done (and also to lose RM1600 for the tuition fee). However, I wasn't given any guidelines on when the orientation will take place, which class to take, or even the courses list. After asking around, apparently there aren't any! And so I had to ask around on which class to take, and so on. Urgh.

Higher Education Professional Training Program for Young Lecturers

Earlier last week, I learned that my name was in the list for this program. I don't know how the Ministry of Higher Education pick my name of all people. But since it was an order from the ministry and was compulsory, I went anyway. It was held for 4 days, July 2-5, 2009 at the Grand Season Hotel, KL. 4 days of never-ending food, and talks. It was a good initiative, but some speakers were just boring to death, although there were some who were good. But o well, I got a certificate for it, and am qualified to be a lecturer already! Owh, almost forgot that I need to have a PhD to become a lecturer. Dang.

First day of class

Today is the first day of class, and the lecturer was late. Ha! Also, the shocking truth was, most of the students in the class were dropped from the class, without notice. Apparently there were too many students registered for the class online, but UPM only allow 80 students in each class. To meet this criteria, they restrict to class to only students from the Faculty of Biotechnology and also from IBS (what it is, I don't know). However, instead of telling us from the start, and instead of dropping those who aren't from the two categories, they dropped EVERYONE except for those who gave their names to this one person. How the hell a new student like me would know that?! And they told us about this during our first class. Ha! So ended up I wasn't registered for any class this semester, other than my Master research project (12 credit). Anyway, we went to see the person to give our names during the 5-minute break, but then found out this person was on leave today. Ha! KILL ME ALREADY!

That sums up pretty much all the things that I have been doing for the past couple of weeks (or more). And today I was smacked by another workload. Dush!

Why is today Monday..

p/s: This morning there was a car tail-gating me. It was a busy morning as always, so he didn't have a chance to overtake me. I like to sort of piss off these kind of people by not giving way to them, so I kept on driving without changing to the left lane, and I was able to piss him off for quite some time. After a while, there was an opportunity for him to overtake me through the left lane, and I was like, "urgh~." However, the road merge with a bigger road -- from 2-lanes to 4-lanes. I moved to the most right lane because I wanted to go straight. While doing that, I kept my eye on the car, just to see how fast he could go. Well, he kept on tail-gating on other cars. He couldn't change to the right lane because he was too close to the front car, and ended up, I was much faster than him. 'Haha. Learn from me, Mister. The art of smart-driving, not haste-driving.' *Proud face* Tu la drive gelabah sangat, padan muka lambat. Kancil kecik comot ni lagi pantas dari Persona kau tau!

Monday, June 15, 2009

My 5-day break

Today is my first day at work after a 5-day off (2 weekends + 3 days leave). It feels really good after a long break since I hadn't had one in a lo~ng time. So it feels really good~ Although I must admit it was quite a tiring break..but fun at the same time. Plus, I got to settle quite a lot of things that I had postponed for quite some time.

So, what did I do during my 5-day break?

Thursday - Had brunch at home (my mom made fried rice). Went to the bank to settle some things at about noon. Then headed to the office to take some documents to submit to JPA, but later realized that I left a document at home. Postponed it to Monday. Then headed straight to my bf's late-grandmother's place in Rembau. Bought some smoked fish to bring Rembau (in addition to a plastic bag full of rambutan picked from a tree at my house). Reached Rembau, helped here and there, ate dinner, helped around (again), then went to bed at around 1am.

Friday - Woke up early--very early--at about 430am. Accompanied my bf to pick his brother up from Seremban (he took a night bus from penang). The journey took 45 minutes one way! I was planning on sleeping on the way back, but since my bf was too sleepy, I had to stay awake to make sure he didn't fall asleep behind the wheel! Reached Rembau at 6am, my bf went back to sleep but I didn't, and took a shower instead (not fair! >.<). I mean, how could I go to sleep when my bf's mother was wide awake and busy preparing breakfast, right? So after shower I helped around before preparing to go to the town for the big event (my bf's eldest sister was getting married). I was able to watch the whole ceremony (videos and photos later). Then came back to the house and helped around with the preparation for the next-day reception. But ended up not helping a whole lot due to headache and fatigue. So, I rested a lot instead. Like my bf said, "You've already helped a lot..although you slept 40-50% of the time." huhuhu. Later in the day, I found out that it's that time of the month already, so that explained the fatigue. After helping with the goodie bag, my bf forced me to go to bed at 1230am, although I later found out the next day that other people went to bed at 3am+, and some at 5am. They must have been mad at me for going to bed early. Haha.

Saturday - The reception day--the busiest day. After taking a shower at around 7am, I helped around with the cooking and other preparations. By 11am, I was sweating a lot and decided to take a shower again before dressing up for the event, which started at 12pm. My fatigue was still there, so most of the time during the event, I was inside the house, resting and waiting for my parents to come. The groom arrived at about 130pm. I got to see the whole ceremony done the Negeri Sembilan way. It was my first time seeing it, and I was excited. I filmed part of the ceremony (will post later). Not too long after that, my parents arrived, and my bf and I ate our lunch with them. Got to introduce my parents to my bf's moms and relatives (yeay!). After my parents left, our friends arrived, and they left just before the event ended at 3pm. After the event, everyone was just sitting around and chatting while listening to whoever was brave enough to sing at the open-mic. My bf and his cousin sang a Negeri Sembilan song, and I filmed it (of course!). Although it's very temping to post the video here, I was already warned not to post it. Huhu. Anyway, the house was a disaster after the event. Trash and dirty dishes was everywhere. So we started cleaning at about 5pm+. I helped with the dishes, but after that I was too tired to do anything else. We managed to get most of the cleaning done by dinner, so that's good. And since everyone didn't get enough sleep the night before, the house was already quite by 10pm. However, me, my bf, and some of his cousins were watching the tv till 12am before going to bed.

Sunday - Woke up at 6am, but ended up falling asleep again on the couch until 7am. Took shower, packed, had breakfast, sat around and left home at about 1pm. Had lunch at 315pm and went back home before going out again to send my bf's brother to KL central (he had to go back to Penang). After sending him off, we went to the cinema to watch Night at the Museum 2, using the free tickets that I got for my birthday. It was a funny movie, but I guess I was too tired that I almost fall asleep when watching it. Huhu. After the movie, we headed straight home since it's already 1030pm.

Monday - Day off! Whee~! Woke up pretty late at around 9am. Left the house at around 11am. Change the engine oil on the way to Putrajaya. Had lunch at Alamanda while waiting for the office to open at 215pm. Since Alamanda is a mall, I ended up buying a hand cream for my bf (he didn't want it, of course, but I knew he needed one) and an eye cream for me (hopefully it works!). Handed in the documents to JPA, but ended up having to write letters to ask for permission to postpone the contract (Haish, lagi baik buat bodo. Skrg dah banyak keje). Then headed for Shah Alam to get my bf's watch and ring that he left at Rembau from his cousin. After that we headed to Gombak, before I decided to bring my sick kitten to see the vet. Drove around to find a vet and failed. After doing some search on the internet we found one which was cheap and quite close. So we headed there after bringing the kitten along. The kitten had to get an injection which costs me rm25 and he needed another one in 2 weeks time (owh duitku~). After dropping the kitten off at the house, we went to Jusco Setiawangsa for dinner, but the restaurant was closed. We tried a new restaurant instead and watched a real-life 'drama' of a couple. The girl didn't even look at the guy and they ended up not eating anything! I bet the guy had done something really bad. Hohoho. Anyway, after dinner we got something from the supermarket--insect repellent for the car, rat trap for my bf's place, hair gel for my bf, and a hot-patch (salonpas) for my bf's stiffed shoulders. Then we had a nice talk at our favorite eating place near our home before he sent me home..

Anyway, I feel really good that I was able to settle most of the things that I wanted to settle. I don't know why but I feel like wanting to take care of all the things that I kinda neglected all this while--my cats, the cars.. And now that I have settled most of the things on my list, I feel good~ (mcm motto ntv7 tak? hehe).

Now, these are the things that are still on the list:
1) make a new mykad
2) buy conditioner (I have been depending on hair-oil for quite some time now. huhu)
3) change Kancil's engine oil (Hopefully it's not dried up yet!)
4) Kancil needs a bath and a good polish!
5) bring my other cats to the vet too

Not so important:
1) buy new make up sample from lovingminerals. com (ade sape2 nak blanje? :D)

Can't wait for my next paycheck! >.<

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

too much in a day

It is only 1204pm and I have already discovered two '18sx' materials.

1) Fucking, Austria


2) Korean Penis Fish

Monday, June 1, 2009

Davis, my second home

I have been in Malaysia for almost 11 months now. Wow, I did not notice it at all.

It has been almost a year, but I still miss my second home, Davis, a small town in North California.

official logo of Davis (wikipedia)

Maybe for those who are used to living in the city would not like Davis the first time they go there. No malls, no tall buildings, lots of bicycles and not that many cars..the smell of cows..is that a nightmare or what?

cows eating

lembu-lembu kepanasan?

But no, Davis is actually a paradise. Or like I used to describe it--a fantasy town. A perfect world of their own, secluded from the brutal world outside. You know, kinda like Disneyland, but less extreme.

Davis is known to be as an environmental-friendly town, with recycle bins scattered everywhere, people use their bikes as the main transportation, and not that many street lights so that people can enjoy star-gazing at night. And during the spring time, there will be Whole Earth Festival on campus (open for the public, of course), which is fully environmental friendly. Electricity is generated by solar panels, and no plastics/non-biodegradable items are used.

You can find this everywhere
We used to have this in our apartment

This is located on campus

Crafts sold during Whole Earth Festival

Buy your food, pay deposit for the plates/cutleries/cups, and get it back after returning the dishes

Solar panel

A sign during the Whole Earth Festival. Notice the number of bikes

Being a university town, Davis is populated with mostly educated people from different walks of life. A small town full of educated people is really a very welcoming experience. We can express our opinion about sensitive topics and people are open about that. No one is a majority and everyone is so friendly. People at the grocery stores will ask us if we need help getting the stuffs to our car. The lady at the Asian Market asks about the scarfs that we wear. Once, a stranger on campus said hello to me even though I did not know him.

Also being a university town, UC Davis will organize Picnic Day during spring every year. It is like a open day for the university. Picnic Day is the largest event held on campus, and "is believed to be the largest student-run event in the US" (wikipedia). There will be parade, exhibitions, demonstrations, competitions, booths, and performances on this day. I would say it is the most-waited event every year. Students might also see their professors cow-milking on this day.

Parade on Picnic Day

Dog race (?) on Picnic Day

People always think that a small town usually has nothing. But think again. In Davis, we can plan on eating Thai food for dinner and change the plan at the very last minute to sushi buffet, since the restaurants are just 2-3 minutes apart by foot. Thai food, Chinese food, Mediterranean food, Italian food, Korean food, Japanese food--you name it, Davis has it (although I wish they have Malaysian and Indonesian restaurants in town). And do not worry about entertainment. There are three cinemas and a paintball field in this small town. There are also a bowling alley, and a game archade on campus. And we also have a large theatre hall called Mondavi Center. When there is a need for shopping, there is a GAP store and a Gottschalk about 5 minutes away by bike from the campus. And if you feel like browsing through a larger variety, Vacaville factory outlets is only 30 minutes away by car and Sacramento city is only 20 minutes away by car. No car? Not to worry. Buses are always there to serve you.

Fuji Chef - the most popular sushi buffet in town

University Mall

I used to stop here on my way back to my apartment

Owh, almost forgot about the Farmer's market. A market selling local products. Those cheeses, juicy oranges, strawberries.. And your visit to the Farmer's market on a Saturday morning will usually be welcomed by some live music. Such a peaceful and lively atmosphere.

Farmers Market..love the free samples. hehe

musicians performing at Farmers Market

Ahh~ I do not care what other people say. I just love Davis.

Owh, did I mention UCD still use those red double-decker buses from London? Yup, with the driver seat on the right.

Red double decker Unitrans bus. This is on campus

Owh, and did I mention about the Arboretum and the ducks? A LOT of ducks..

The main entrance to the UCD Arboretum

Part of Arboretum. (Arboretum is a long lake..this is the middle part of it)

Ducks at the arboretum, although sometimes they fly to the downtown area. Wait for the spring to come. You could see 'duck rape' almost everywhere. haha

Ahh..~ how I wish I could go back to Davis with my bf and walk the Arboretum with him...

(Most of the pictures are taken from DavisWiki. The logo is from Wikipedia)

Grad school application - APPROVED!

I got a text from a colleague this evening telling me to check my grad school application status online. So, I checked it right away, and it was approved. Yeay! Finally.

So I will be starting off my new life as a student again this July. July 3, 2009 to be exact. I will be doing Master of Science (Environmental Biotechnology) with thesis program under the Faculty of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences for 1-3 years.

Hmm..what do I need to do before the semester started? Register, pay the tuition fee (RM1600, urgh), and register for classes I suppose? I should better confirm about that soon.

Anyway, I am excited. Finally I have something to do. But when I think about the messy lab..I guess I am not that excited anymore. Huhuhu.

We seriously need a Lab Assistant, urgent.